Schwinn Airdyne Evolution Comp Review

I first encountered the Schwinn stationary bike at my local Y.  I drove to the Y every time I wanted to use it and eventually decided that I would use it more if I didn't have to go anywhere.  I shopped around looking for the best price.  While I was looking I noticed that the bike was very different at one shop. I would never have thought of buying the bike if that had been the only shop I ever visited. It seemed to be poor quality, that is simply because it was not well assembled.  I did find a shop where the bicycle was well assembled and have been very happy with the purchase.  I have owned it for several years and it has never needed service.  The mechanism is resistance based, so it works as hard as you do.  The fan in the front has curved blades that grab the air.  The harder you pedal, the more resistance is created by the fan.  This rubs both ways.  You are in complete control of how hard you will work, so you need to be tuned in to how hard you're working.  It is easy to loose focus and slack off.  You'll have to remember to push hard sometimes. The arm movement makes it more of total body work out.

This bike has been well used and it was a good purchase.  I haven't always used it regularly, but I have never stopped using it completely. For me that is the measure of a worthwhile purchase of exercise equipment.  Ocasionally one pedal gets a bit loose and needs to be tightened, but that is the closest thing to service ever needed.  The fan is a bit noisey and it's right up next to you.  A headset would be a good idea if you want to be able to hear music or television while exercising.

I am using this more regularly because I'm planning my first distance bike ride in a few months.  Because I live in a congested area, getting outdoors on my bicycle isn't always easy.  So while the original purpose was general fitness, the bike will be seeing increasingly heavy use for training.